Haryana Dalit youth's killing: Rahul Gandhi accuses BJP-RSS of considering Bahujan lives 'cheap'

Accusing BJP-RSS of considering Bahujan lives "cheap", Leader of Opposition (LOP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the saffron party in power "is giving free hand to violence wearing the mask of discrimination".

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The Congress leader’s remarks came after the killing of a youth hailing from Dalit community in Haryana's Hisar.

Taking to X, he said, "When power sits in the lap of Manuvadi thinking, the lives of Dalits have no value! The murder of a Dalit youth Ganesh Valmiki in Hisar, Haryana, and the brutality done to his family is not just a crime — it is the ugly face of the Manuvadi system of BJP-RSS which considers the lives of Bahujans in India cheap today, which does not consider them worthy of equality and respect."

He also said the victim's family alleges that Ganesh was murdered by the police, and even after nine days no action was taken. "When the family went to seek justice, they were harassed instead," the LOP said.

This is not an isolated incident — in the last 11 years, cases of atrocities on Dalits, tribals and minorities have increased uncontrollably, he said. "Why is this so? Because the BJP in power has given a free hand to violence wearing the mask of discrimination," he said.

Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rahul said, "The Modi government has not only maintained silence on these atrocities, but by weakening the constitutional institutions, it has made the police and administration a weapon of such crimes and a shield for criminals. In Modi's era, being a Dalit, being poor, being deprived — has become a crime."

Ganesh Valmiki's death is not just the murder of a human being — it is the murder of the Constitution, the murder of Baba Saheb's dreams, he said.

He added, "I stand firmly with the victim's family. This is not just a fight for justice for a family, it is a fight for social justice and the soul of India. Immediate strict action should be taken against the culprits — this is the minimum justice."